Hi everyone, this is very important for all of you to read and get educated on. It is also very important to realize that not all supplements are created equal and it is best to get nutrients in the whole food form by reducing processed food intake and eating more whole foods and vegetables. When buying supplements you need to look for good companies that sell whole food nutrients. I happen to like Standard Process and Designs for Health. Below is the controversy of folic acid and cancer, and all the current research in a nice short note by Dr. Kingsley. Enjoy the read and keep being educated.Yours in health, Dr. Kimberly Maziarz CarlucciThe Folic Acid Controversy Revisited

Folic Acid vs. Folate: Part I Folic Acid: The Story Behind Its Health RisksThe April issue of Prevention magazine contained an article entitled Is Your Breakfast Giving You Cancer?, which has generated significant media and public concern regarding folic acid. The Prevention magazine article presents research that suggests that synthetic folic acid fortification of white flour, rice, breakfast cereals, nutrition bars, beverages, most multi-vitamins and many other nutritional supplements, has led to significant increases in cancer, particularly colon, prostate, and lung cancer. "The more we learn about folic acid, the more it's clear that giving it to everyone has very real risks," says folic acid researcher David Smith, PhD, a professor of pharmacology at the University of Oxford in England, as quoted in the Prevention magazine article.View the article through this link: www.Prevention.com...Although folic acid has been associated with many health benefits, there are a number of research studies suggesting potential health risks of high intake of folic acid from fortified foods and dietary supplements. Folate vs. Folic Acid: What is the difference?The terms "folate" and "folic acid" are often used interchangeably but they are not one and the same. Folates are members of the B vitamin family (referring to various tetrahydrofolate derivatives) naturally occurring in foods, mainly leafy green vegetables. Folic acid, on the other hand, is a fully oxidized, synthetic compound (pteroylmonoglutamic acid), used in dietary supplements and in food fortification. The important difference to note is that folic acid does not occur naturally. Folate and Human HealthWhat is the role of folate? Folate is necessary during rapid cell division and growth. In fact, pregnancy is known to actually double the need of dietary folates. Folate deficiency has been reported to be the most common vitamin deficiency in the US, and is associated with such conditions as:

Anemia

Incidence and recurrence of Neural Tube Defects (serious birth defects of the spinal cord and the brain which arise during the early development of the embryo, most common being spina bifida)

Increased risk of certain cancers

Elevated Homocysteine, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, stroke and many other health conditions

Potential Causes of a Folate Deficiency

Inadequate dietary intake

Increased requirement, as in pregnancy and lactation

Malabsorption

Altered hepatic (liver) metabolism

Increased elimination of folate

Neural Tube Defects (NTDs): How Folic Acid Fortification All BeganThe overwhelming evidence for the protective effect of folic acid supplementation before conception and during early pregnancy on the development of NTDs led to the mandatory folic acid fortification in the United States and Canada. Food fortification rather than supplementation was deemed necessary because NTDs could occur during early pregnancy, before a woman knows she is pregnant. And so the fortification of folic acid began.The Downside of Folic Acid FortificationIncidences of spina bifida and cardiovascular events have been significantly reduced because of folic acid fortification. However, studies have emerged which raised concern on the safety of chronic intake of high levels of folic acid from fortified foods, beverages and dietary supplements. It has been shown that many ready-to-eat foods are actually over-fortified with folic acid and that the projected daily folic acid intake from fortified food has been greatly exceeded. The risk of higher than desired folic acid intake is compounded by concerns over the appearance of unmetabolized (unaltered) folic acid in the blood circulatory system. It has been demonstrated that even a modest intake of less than 400 micrograms per day of folic acid from fortified foods or supplements leads to the appearance of umetabolized folic acid in the bloodstream. The health outcomes of chronic exposure to unmetabolized folic acid have not been evaluated and it is recommended that long term studies on the safety of folic acid have to be conducted. There are several studies that seem to indicate potential risk of folic acid intake. It is estimated that this practice of synthetic folic acid fortification has resulted in 15,000 additional cancers per year in the US alone. One study had shown an apparent increase in the incidence of colorectal cancer after the mandatory fortification of folic acid in both the US and Canada. Several papers commented that the observed trend of higher incidence of colorectal cancer following folic acid fortification should not be surprising since it has been known after synthesized folic acid had became available in the 1940s that folic acid enhances the growth of pre-existing cancers and tumors. There is a growing body of evidence that seems to suggest the dual role of folates in carcinogenesis. High folate status prevents cancer development in the absence of preneoplastic lesions (abnormal tissue) but folic acid supplementation promotes the growth and development of existing preneoplastic lesions. At present, there are no published studies showing that supplementation with nature-identical folates such as 5-methyltetrahydrofolate and 5-formyltetrahydrofolate enhances the progression of pre-existing neoplasms. What is the solution? Please keep reading as I will address the use of supplemental natural folates in the conclusion of our two-part series on Folic Acid vs. Folate.ReferencesUlrich CM, Potter JD. Folate supplementation: too much of a good thing? Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2006 Feb;15(2):189-93. Kim YI. Folic acid fortification and supplementation-good for some but not so good for others. Nutr Rev. 2007 Nov;65(11):504-11. Powers HJ. Folic acid under scrutiny. Br J Nutr. 2007 Oct;98(4):665-6. Wright AJ, Dainty JR, Finglas PM. 2007. Folic acid metabolism in human subjects revisited: potential implications for proposed Forssén KM, Jägerstad MI, Wigertz K, Witthöft CM. Folates and dairy products: a critical update. J Am Coll Nutr. 2000 Apr;19(2 Suppl):100S-110S. Duthie SJ. Folic acid deficiency and cancer: mechanisms of DNA instability. Br Med Bull. 1999;55(3):578-92. van der Put NM, van Straaten HW, Trijbels FJ, Blom HJ. Folate, homocysteine and neural tube defects: an overview. Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2001 Apr;226(4):243-70. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Spina Bifida and Anencephaly Before and After Folic Acid Mandate - United States, 1995-1996 and 1999-2000. MMWR Weekly, May 7, 2004 53(17):362-365. Shane B. Folate fortification: enough already? Am J Clin Nutr. 2003 Jan;77(1):8-9. Brody T. Nutritional biochemistry. San Diego: Academic Press 1999. Folic Acid vs. Folates: Part II The Story of Natural FolatesAs we saw in Part I of the Folic Acid vs. Folate Story, there is a vast difference between these two nutrients. Folate is naturally found in food, and carries with it no known downside. Folic acid, on the other hand, a synthesized compound, carries with it potential serious health risks. As folic acid researcher David Smith, PhD, a professor of pharmacology at the University of Oxford in England, said in the Prevention magazine article which triggered public concern over this B vitamin, "Unlike folate, folic acid isn't found in nature, so we don't know the effect of the excess." At Designs for Health we fully understand and appreciate the critical roles in regard to health that folates play, including facilitating proper methylation for optimal genetic expression, and lowering the risk of neural tube defects and cardiovascular disease, both associated with elevated homocysteine levels. We, thus, encourage the addition of folate-containing foods as part of a healthy diet.Important sources of folate

leafy green vegetables

fruits

legumes

liver

eggs

dairy products

orange juice

However, it is often difficult to obtain therapeutic amounts of many nutrients strictly through the diet, which is where supplementation steps in. With the discovery of potential health issues related to synthetic folic acid, the supplement industry became faced with a new challenge. Is there a way to gain benefit from folates without contributing to cancer risk and incidence? The answer is Yes!Designs for Healthtakes its "Science first" commitment very seriously. Clear evidence of this commitment is the fact that in our entire product line of folate-containing products we only use NatureFolate™, a blend of natural folates including those found in spinach. Putting science first, we made the decision to use NatureFolate™ even though the price of folic acid is approximately $35 per kilo while the natural isomer of 5-MTHF used in NatureFolate™ costs in excess of $15,000 per kilo! The folate forms found in NatureFolate™ are fully reduced tetrahydrofolates, the key here being that do not require liver enzymes to metabolize them into active folate. These are safe, natural forms which are quickly and easily utilized by the body. NatureFolate™ provides the proven benefits of optimal folate supplementation without the risks. DFH replaced folic acid with NatureFolate™ not only in our featured folate products, but in all DFH products, such as our multivitamins, including our prenatal vitamin, as well as our formulary blends. Simply put, it is safer to consume natural folates than to consume folic acid long-term. Once again, nature knows best. Yours for Better Health Naturally,

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Dr. Kim Maziarz Carlucci, DC

I have been a chiropractor for since 1996 but an athlete since I played baseball with the boys in the early pee wee leagues. I continued with sports throughout my high school career: softball, basketball, skiing and competitive horseback riding. In chiropractic school I was introduced to functional exercise and structural rehabilitation and continue to do this type of exercise to this day with great success. I have now been trained in Functional Medicine. Functional medicine addresses the underlying causes of disease, using a systems-oriented approach and engaging both patient and practitioner in a therapeutic partnership. It is an evolution in the practice of medicine that better addresses the healthcare needs of the 21st century. By shifting the traditional disease-centered focus of medical practice to a more patient-centered approach, functional medicine addresses the whole person, not just an isolated set of symptoms. Functional medicine practitioners spend time with their patients, listening to their histories and looking at the interactions among genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors that can influence long-term health and complex, chronic disease. In this way, functional medicine supports the unique expression of health and vitality for each individual.